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Chancellor of the Exchequer
The Chancellor of the Exchequer (often shortened to Chancellor) is a senior official within the Government and head of Her Majesty's Treasury. The position is considered one of the four Great Offices of State, one of the four positions that every Government must include, and in recent times has come to be the the most powerful office after the Prime Minister. The Chancellor is usually responsible for all economic and financial matters in the country. The current Chancellor of the Exchequer is quirky editor. As with all the Cabinet posts, Chancellors are often appointed by the Prime Minister. They are normally people who have at least a foundation understanding of Economics. However, as it is such a major role, a few members have suggested in the past that Government members should elect their Chancellor. It is common for there to be a Chief Secretary to the Treasury in the Government too. They will work closely with the Chancellor and their remits may frequently cross. The Chancellor may also often work with the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy due to the overlap between their roles. Responsibilities The Chancellor's principal job is to dictate fiscal policy. The Chancellor has considerable control over other departments as they can determine the budget of each department. However, some Chancellors have more influence than others, depending on their personal forcefulness, their status within the party and their relationship with the Prime Minister. Within the Government, the Chancellor may also be required to assist members with the costings on legislation. Each term the Chancellor is expected to release a Budget Report which should detail their fiscal policies and spending plans for the term. This is traditionally followed by a Finance Bill later in the term which MPs will vote on. List of Chancellors of the Exchequer Agent Smith was appointed as the first Chancellor for the Liberal Democrat Party following the second general election and since him, there have been 26 other Chancellors. Chancellor's Curse Some of the more superstitious members of the House believe in the existence of a 'Chancellor's Curse'. This is a phenomenon whereby the Chancellor becomes completely inactive or something happens to them following their tenure. Theories of the curse first arose in late 2015/early 2016 when things started happening to former Chancellors: Green_Pink (Saoirse:3) received a 6 month ban due to Saoirsegate, Jarred became inactive, Lime-man supposedly left the MHoC when in fact he defected to the Conservative Party on his new account, and United1892 became inactive. Members got so concerned by the strange happenings that in March 2016, Tanqueray91 even proposed an amendment that called on the Government to launch a full investigation into the curse. Aph pointed out that the curse had existed even longer than people imagined as MacDaddi had vanished at the start of the 20th Parliamentary Term and other people highlighted Faland too. The amendment subsequently passed in the Division Lobby by 26 votes to 7. The Chancellor's Curse threatened to return in Parliament 29 when Samuel J. Booker resigned from the role early in the term. Category:Cabinet positions